ESPN had its top broadcast team calling Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinal between the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, but there was one voice missing from the usual group.
Richard Jefferson missed Sunday’s game with an unspecified illness. Play-by-play announcer Mike Breen opened the broadcast by teasingly saying Jefferson had initially been “listed as questionable with an illness” before being “downgraded to out.” He did add, more seriously, that Jefferson is “really feeling under the weather.”
Richard Jefferson is out for Game 4 of Knicks-76ers with an illness. Mike Breen and Tim Legler will call the game as a two-man booth. pic.twitter.com/n7LYyat5v6
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 10, 2026
Jefferson’s absence meant Breen and Tim Legler did the game as a two-man booth.
The team of Jefferson and Legler is ESPN’s latest attempt at creating an entertaining booth that many feel their coverage has been lacking since the unexpected dismissal of Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson. Presumably, he will be back with the group as soon as he feels better.
Jefferson joined ESPN in 2019, first as a studio analyst and later as a game analyst. He spent 17 seasons in the NBA before that, and remains best remembered for his time with the New Jersey Nets.
